Argentarii LLC Trims Position in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Argentarii LLC trimmed its position in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 23.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 6,072 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,844 shares during the period. Argentarii LLC’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $1,000,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in ZTS. Rakuten Securities Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Zoetis by 5,533.3% in the 4th quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 169 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares during the period. Navigoe LLC purchased a new stake in Zoetis during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp bought a new position in Zoetis in the fourth quarter worth approximately $44,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC raised its position in Zoetis by 141.4% in the first quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 280 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,000 after acquiring an additional 164 shares during the period. Finally, Bfsg LLC boosted its stake in shares of Zoetis by 614.6% during the 1st quarter. Bfsg LLC now owns 293 shares of the company’s stock worth $48,000 after acquiring an additional 252 shares during the last quarter. 92.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ZTS has been the subject of several analyst reports. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Zoetis from $189.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Piper Sandler upped their price target on Zoetis from $205.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus downgraded Zoetis from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $165.00 to $160.00 in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $212.13.

Insider Activity at Zoetis

In related news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 652 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total transaction of $110,840.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 15,129 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,571,930. This trade represents a 4.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Zoetis Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of ZTS stock opened at $159.19 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.74. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $161.16 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $162.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.87 billion, a PE ratio of 28.58, a PEG ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 0.91. Zoetis Inc. has a 52-week low of $139.70 and a 52-week high of $200.33.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The company reported $1.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.40 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $2.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.20 billion. Zoetis had a return on equity of 55.48% and a net margin of 27.12%. The firm’s revenue was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.38 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Zoetis Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 18th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.26%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 18th. Zoetis’s payout ratio is currently 35.91%.

About Zoetis

Zoetis Inc engages in the discovery, development, manufacture, and commercialization of animal health medicines, vaccines, and diagnostic products and services in the United States and internationally. The company commercializes products primarily across species, including livestock, such as cattle, swine, poultry, fish, and sheep and others; and companion animals comprising dogs, cats, and horses.